Egyptians Cast Final Ballots in Vote on Constitution

A supporter of President Mohammed Morsi kissed his portrait during a rally in Cairo, Dec. 11.
Agence France-Presse/Getty Images

Egyptians cast their final ballots in a referendum on a new constitution on Saturday, ending a fraught process that has deeply divided Egyptians and sullied the country's last steps toward a functioning democracy.

Saturday's vote ended the second round in a two-stage referendum that began last week, when about 56% of first-round voters cast ballots in favor of the Islamist-leaning document.

In a reflection of the discord surrounding the polls, only about 32% of eligible voters participated—far less than in previous elections.

The new constitution looks set to pass: Voting in the second round leaned heavily toward rural areas known for their loyalty to the Muslim Brotherhood and conservative Islamist groups who have campaigned for a "yes" vote. Unofficial results will trickle from counting stations throughout Saturday night, while the official results are expected to be announced on Monday.

If the peaceful polling and imminent passage of a permanent charter looked set to finally smooth over Egypt's bumpy transition to stable elected leadership, voters on Saturday remained as anxious as ever for their country's future.

"Yes" and "no" voters both complained that the political process surrounding the constitution's drafting and voting—more so than the final constitutional product itself—had poisoned Egypt's political waters.

The debate has left Islamists and secularists who united to unseat former Egyptian President
Hosni Mubarak
early last year fiercely at odds, cleaving deep rifts between religions, social classes and urban and rural voters.

Instead of unity, the birth of Egypt's so-called "second republic" was marked by suspicion, name-calling and recriminations.

"I can't vote for a constitution while the constitutional court is besieged and the judiciary is paralyzed," said Mohamed Said, a 34 year-old lawyer who was waiting to vote in the rural district of Fayoum south of Cairo. "The articles of the constitution are good in general but it has two-faced clauses that are rubbery and can be bent depending on how they're interpreted."

Street-level violence in the three weeks leading up to the voting nearly scuttled the referendum. President
Mohammed Morsi,
who is backed by the Muslim Brotherhood, sparked days of protest when he blocked Egyptian judges from ruling on the constitutional drafting committee's legitimacy. Mr. Morsi said the judges were loyal to Mr. Mubarak's regime and bent on foiling his Islamist-led government.

When Egypt's high court attempted to convene anyway, they were blocked by Islamist protesters.

Mr. Morsi's heavy-handed approach turned off many within his own government, sparking several resignations.

ENLARGE

Mahmoud Mekki, who on Saturday announced his resignation as Egypt's vice president.
Agence France-Presse/Getty Images

On Saturday, Mr. Morsi's vice president,
Mahmoud Mekki,
announced his own resignation. While the move was expected—the new constitution doesn't mention the office of the vice president—his statement offered a mild dig at the presidency.

"I have realized a while ago that the nature of politics doesn't suit my professional upbringing as a judge,'' said his resignation letter, which was read on state TV.

Chief among the mostly secular opposition's complaints about the charter is that too much of it is left open to interpretation. While the constitution does give Shariah, or Islamic law, a slightly stronger role in governance, opposition leaders are more worried about how Islamist-leaning jurists and legislators will manipulate the document's hazy wording.

Nevertheless, many among the secular-minded Egyptian electorate are voting "yes" out of exhaustion, frustration and hope for a more stable future. "We made a big mistake accepting a president before the constitution. We should have considered that the president might tailor the constitution to his interest," said Hatem Hamza, a 24-year-old lawyer who was arguing with Mr. Said outside the Fayoum polling station. "But as this has already happened, we need to go further and focus more on providing people with better lives."

Mr. Hamza said he would vote "yes."

Mr. Morsi's Brotherhood backers have promoted the new constitution as a first step toward political stability and, eventually, economic growth. Opponents of the draft say Islamists are exploiting the desperation of impoverished, illiterate voters by conflating passage of the constitution with economic growth.

They note when the better-educated, wealthier cities of Cairo and Alexandria went to the polls last week, voters rejected the draft, dealing a sharp rebuke to Islamists who had expected a sweeping nationwide victory.

"The Egypt that is producing, the Egypt that is teaching, the Egypt that is doing everything is against Morsi," said
Mohammed Abul Ghar,
the head of the left-leaning Social Democratic Party. "The most important thing in this referendum is that in spite of all the irregularities, it shows clearly that the secularists have almost 50% of the votes."

As they did last week, secular-leaning politicians complained about what they said were rampant irregularities in the voting process.

Though they have yet to call for a rerun as some opposition leaders did last Sunday, anti-Islamist observers cited a lack of stamped ballot papers, long lines at the polling stations, isolated reports of bribery and accounts of voter intimidation by Islamists.

Egypt's High Election Commission said this week that it would investigate the claims, but said the violations weren't widespread enough to void the referendum.

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